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By Jordan Fliegel, Managing Director of the Techstars Sports Accelerator Powered by Indy

In recruiting this year’s class, we searched world-wide to find not only the best founders -- with tremendous determination, large visions, demonstrated in-depth knowledge of their particular markets, and the humor and humility to rally a team around them --  but also startups that were relatively insulated from the risks of a prolonged battle against COVID-19 and/or which actually benefited from some of the pandemic’s effect on consumer behavior and its associated, likely long-term, implications. Importantly, we also sought out startups with either large starry-eyed visions and legitimate customer demand pre-launch, or startups with meaningful revenue and a clear path to profitability in the short-term.  And of course, given our unfair advantage in having leading sports properties as partners, alongside 160+ amazing mentors, many of whom have built or invested in the leading sports companies today, we carefully considered selecting a class where every company will benefit from the resources our accelerator can bring forward. 

From eSports and sports media, to fan engagement, athleisure, athlete wellness, and deep tech like AI and Robotics, these ten companies have demonstrated strong visions and clear paths to profitability and beyond in their industries. Our 2020 class hails from across the United States, from tech hubs like Boston and New York City, to Detroit and Auburn, with two companies out of Europe and two more from Tel Aviv and Bogota. We couldn’t be more excited to bring these ten companies to the city of Indianapolis, one of the best sports towns in the world and an emerging hub for sportstech. 

In partnership with our founding partners Pacers Sports & Entertainment, NCAA, Next Level Fund/50 South Capital and Indiana Sports Corp, and supporting partners the Indianapolis Colts, NTT IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Techstars Sports is thrilled to announce our 2020 class. 

eSports/Digital Entertainment: 

F2K Gaming (Germany)

F2K is a media entertainment organization, bringing  positive and educational content to millions of viewers every month. Being the most diverse team in gaming we realize that with great reach comes great responsibility, to make the life of our viewers better and enable them to be themselves, together.

Beastcoast (NYC)

Beastcoast is global professional gaming organization and digital media enterprise focused on providing amazing, memorable esports fan experiences by competing in a wide variety of esports titles at the highest possible level. Come #MakeWaves with us!

Sports Media:

Esportudo (Boston)

Esportudo is a sports media and entertainment brand giving latino fans the most complete coverage on their favorite sports, teams, leagues and players through personalized applications. The more you know, the better fan you become, which is why we provide engaging sports content and updates to millions of viewers on the topics that matter most.

Locker (Dublin) 

Locker is a platform which is changing the way fans globally consume sports media through personalization. By implementing deep machine-learning and trusted content aggregation, Locker provides users with a single app to find and consume the topics they love, from the media brands they trust.

Athlete Wellness/Nutrition:

Fitnescity (NYC)

Fitnescity helps people make more informed decisions about their fitness, diet and general health, by offering a variety of in-person and at-home lab tests, alongside detailed data analysis presented via an intuitive user interface. 

ZoneIn (NYC)

ZoneIn believes that every athlete deserves access to personalized nutrition and hydration services. Customized to the training schedule and body needs of each athlete, ZoneIn is the evidence-based platform that fills the gaps in accessing quality nutrition and hydration services

AI/Robotics:

Tennibot (Auburn, AL)

Tennibot eliminates the worst part of playing tennis, which is picking up balls! We provide the only autonomous robotic tennis assistant in the market. Tennibot detects & picks up tennis balls on the court using cameras, sensors and complex algorithms. 

SenSwim (Tel Aviv)

SenSwim is the only live, wearable-free analysis system for swimming.  SenSwim tracks, monitors, and analyzes multiple swimmers in real-time via AI, helping coaches and swimmers by providing immediate data and feedback to improve performance. SenSwim enables coaches to focus on coaching, rather than manual data collection, and helps swimmers by providing previously unimaginable rich data analysis, all while enhancing safety in public pools by monitoring drowning risk in real time.  

Athleisure:

REZA (Detroit)

REZA is an up-coming footwear brand that specializes in light-up footwear. By implementing the most advanced technology, REZA aim's to make a shoe that not only keeps you safe at nighttime but changes the way we interpret fashion-technology. 

Fan Engagement: 

Rebus (Bogota, Columbia)

Rebus is an upsell engine that helps sports franchises, teams, sponsors, and brands generate additional revenue by offering fans unique products and meaningful ancillary experiences. Rebus enables every sports event to become an awe-inspiring fan experience.  

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